Prey demo

Nearly a decade in the making, this first-person shooter built off the Doom 3 engine isn't likely to reinvent the genre, but it's still a great-looking game with enough gameplay twists to make the action interesting. The demo is very large and has rather high system requirements, but if you have the bandwidth, the firepower, and a tolerance for mature content, this download gives you a great look at the beginning of the full game.

The demo starts at what appears to be the beginning of the game. You are Tommy, a garage mechanic looking to leave the Cherokee reservation behind...if only your girlfriend, Jen, would let you. A dramatic abduction traps you, Jen, and your grandfather aboard a hostile alien craft with little explanation about your predicament. Armed only with a wrench, you must learn the aliens' deadly plan and destroy them all to save the planet.

Overall, the game looks fantastic, rivaling Half-Life 2 for character expression and reaction. Sound effects and visual details add nice touches, especially the Art Bell broadcast from the spaceship's radio, and the bad classic rock on the bar jukebox. Alien portals spawn enemies from nowhere, and little details like conveyor belts, health-spewing spores, and worm-like doors make the spaceship a unique environment for exploration and combat.